Cookie Dough PB Cups

A few weeks ago, I impulsively made these because I was craving sweets and chocolate like a starving child.

Then a week later, when we only had two left, I just had to make them again. They're fortunately (or unfortunately) very easy to make. And they are probably one of the best things I've ever baked, except you don't have to bake them. This is coming from someone who has had some serious issues lately controlling their baking and eating-baked-goods addiction.

In my "normal" life I don't really eat a lot of sweets. When I'm pregnant, it seems that every day I can't go without some sort of dessert. Sometimes, twice a day. I feel super guilty about it, especially with things like cookie dough peanut butter cups. I mean, that can't be good for my baby - even with the healthy food I eat. However, this pregnancy I was really nauseated and sick up until I was 22-weeks-pregnant, and I would take getting fat any day over being nauseous while mothering a young child. So, I'm taking advantage of the situation :) These are a total pregnancy-utopia food. Except everyone in my life that has tried them has moaned while doing so.

If you're here looking for the chocolate latkes recipe I promised last week, I received the honor of posting it to my friend Tara's blog. Check it out here. Also, her blog is awesome. Look through it for some great ideas.

So the most dangerous part of this recipe is that you technically can just make the cookie dough and eat that. It's eggless so it can be stored and consumed safely (does anyone pay attention to that though? I eat cookie dough all of the time, with eggs or not). My original plan was to do that but somehow I ended up making the entire recipe, which I got from another favorite blog of mine, How Sweet It Is.

First you make the cookie dough, then you melt chocolate and mold it into cupcake cups.

After everything has set in the freezer, simply pack the cookie dough into the chocolate cups tightly, cover the cups with more melted chocolate, and freeze it again until totally set. Pack them tightly. Don't waste chocolate-chip-peanut-butter-cookie-dough. 

Um, yea.. no baking. So easy. Too delicious. Dangerous. If you were to file this recipe that's what it would be under.

No really nice, quality stomach shots at all lately. The last time we used an actual camera (not a camera phone) to take pictures of my growth was when I was 25 weeks pregnant. I'm 32 weeks now, and really dropping the ball on watching my baby grow. This pregnancy is flying by to say the least! I know I'm bigger, but for some reason the scale isn't showing it. I gained like five pounds in my first trimester and then it seemed to slow down. By this point in my previous pregnancy I had gained over 20 pounds. The doctor's office scale is saying I've only gained 13.  It's likely the reason is that my adorable son, who is 23-months-old today (WTF), is like a second gym membership. Maybe that's why I can't stop eating dessert, because I'm legitimately starving.

Yes. That will be my excuse.

Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cups

Original Recipe from How Sweet It Is

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/4 cup creamy peanut butter (I used Harris Teeter Organic No-Stir because I HATE processed PB)

3/4 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons AP flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

2 1/2 cups milk chocolate chips, divided (I used Ghirardelli)

Sprinkles (optional)

Melt the butter in a small saucepan and whisk in the brown sugar. Let it cook a few minutes until the sugar dissolves and it bubbles a bit. Add the peanut butter and vanilla and whisk it until it's fully mixed. Set it aside.

While it's cooling, melt 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips. I did it in 30-second intervals in the microwave, stirring it between, until it was just melted. Line a cupcake tin with liners (the original recipe calls for mini-cupcakes, but I didn't have those and quite frankly, I think that would be too small for me) and using a pastry brush, brush the chocolate on the bottom and up the sides of the liner. Don't let it be too thin, as this will hold the cookie dough! When you're done, put the tin in the freezer until it sets - about 15 minutes.

Going back to your cookie dough, whisk the powdered sugar, flour, and salt into the mixture, then fold in the mini-chocolate chips. Put it in the fridge to cool and set for about 10 minutes. When it's cool, remove it and pack each cupcake liner with some of the dough until it's almost 3/4 of the way full. Place it back in the freezer for about ten minutes. Melt the rest of the milk chocolate in the same fashion, and spoon each cup with about two tablespoons of melted chocolate. Use the pastry brush to distribute it evenly. Add sprinkles if desired. Put the tin back in the freezer.

This is the hard part. Waiting.

You shouldn't have to wait more than 10 minutes for the entire thing to set, but if you can manage to wait 30 minutes, these will be even better. Remove the liners and enjoy. Store these in the fridge. They are much better served cold!